The Firefly Brigade started around 1999 and they organized a critical mass ride to make a statement plus make people aware that cycling is cool and environmentally safe.

This bike parade always cause ruckus in the participating cities due to the sheer number of cyclists who join. Motorized vehicles stop at intersections and let the thousands of cyclists pass. So if you are on your way to mass on a Sunday morning and the Tour of the Fireflies happen to pass by your path, expect a 24 minute (or more) delay. That is the only negative thing I can say about the Tour of the Fireflies.

Now we move on to the more positive aspects of the critical mass ride of the Firefly Brigade.

It brings cyclists together. Young, old, girl, boy, newbie or veteran, bikers of different sizes and shapes, from diverse disciplines come together to ride this “slow parade of costumed cyclists”… which brings me to number two:

You can be crazy with your costume while riding your bike. There is a theme every year, but the cray cray costumes are always diverse. Curious-fun-loving-people take pictures and its all for good fun. Some people not only dress themselves up but their bikes as well.

You can meet a lot of people who are into biking. While pedaling, you can simply strike a conversation on anybody and they are friendly enough to answer and it is up to you on how long your conversation would last. (You can simply slow down or speed up if you want the “chit chat” to end)

See different kinds of bicycles. From road bikes to cruisers to folding bikes to hardtails to full-suspension bikes to fat bikes to rat bikes, you get your fill of totally diverse toys each one customized to the liking of the owner. Sure there are stock bikes present, but I believe that no two bikes are exactly the same.

You feel like a newbie. No matter how long you have been a cyclist, during the Tour of the Firefly, you could feel that newbie-ness vibe in the air. For some it is OK, for others it isn’t, but the whole parade is pure good vibes so there are a lot of smiles and positivity. No need to brag about your last epic ride, nor your gnarly adventure in the mountain would give you a boost here, everyone is equal and rolling on a very slow pace. Here, you are young once again.

Freebies = this depends on the sponsors for the year. More sponsors mean more free stuff.

Tour of the Fireflies is FUN.

please don’t text and ride

Even if the parade was just around UP Diliman this year, I still saw it as a tradition and joined the fiesta. Yes, I missed the enjoyment of going thru different cities causing traffic, cause that’s what the Tour is about. They say there were some “politics” involved that’s why the ride through the Metro was cancelled… its a major bummer but sometimes we have to suck it up. There is always next year. We just hope for a better one next year and the organizers should learn from all this. Praying for a better ride next year, more sponsors, better route and more FUN!